


Tree's a Crowd

by K_K_TiBal



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Construction Worker Dean, M/M, Tumblr Prompt, activist!Cas, sort of, tree hugger!Cas
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-27
Updated: 2016-05-27
Packaged: 2018-07-10 14:17:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,936
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6988399
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/K_K_TiBal/pseuds/K_K_TiBal
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Based on the tumblr post "I really need an AU where Dean is a construction worker and Cas is that asshole that ties himself to a tree because it’s sentimental to him."  <a href="http://profoundbondage.co.vu/post/138640047920/i-really-need-an-au-where-dean-is-a-construction">X</a></p>
            </blockquote>





	Tree's a Crowd

“Look, dude,” Dean rubbed at his eyes, wiping away the sweat that was slowly dripping down his forehead. “No matter how you spin this, the whole charade doesn’t end well for you.”

Cold, blue eyes stared back at him.

“We’re giving you another five minutes of prancing around and then I’m going to have to physically remove you.” Dean crossed his arms in front of his chest and smirked at the man in front of him. “And between you and me, I’ve got some mass on you and I’ll easily be able to-”

The man calmly removed his backpack with a small huff and began pulling out a long length of chain. It didn’t look especially heavy, but damn, there was a lot of it. 

“Now hold on!” Dean watched helplessly as the man wrapped the chain around the tree twice and once around himself, clamping it together with a padlock. 

“This is a little extreme.” Dean complained. 

The man pulled out a pair of handcuffs and snapped one end around his wrist and the other on a chain link before smiling at Dean sweetly. 

“Your move,” he said in a deep, gravelly voice.

Dean threw up his hands in disbelief and walked the fifteen feet back to his tractor. 

*

Crowley’s voice on the other end of the phone sounded vaguely amused when Dean relayed what had happened. “The threat didn’t work, then?”

Dean shook his head, even though he knew Crowley couldn’t see it. He moved around to the back of the tractor and kept his voice low. “Nah. I think he knows that we can’t actually touch him. Probably read up on the law before he came down and chained himself to the damn tree.”

There was a pondering hum on the line. “Looks like you’re just going to have to wait him out. He’s going to have some human urges to attend to sooner or later.”

“I don’t know, boss,” Dean glanced over at the guy, scowling at the smug look he had plastered on his face. “He’s got a shit ton of stuff in a backpack and I’ve only ever seen him drinking liquids. He looks determined.”

“Bottom line? He can’t stay forever,” Crowley said. “I’ve got to go take care of something else right now, but the moment he has to leave, take a chainsaw to the trunk, then tear that tree out of the ground. Got it?”

Dean rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Got it. Talk to you later.”

He shoved the phone back in his pocket and took a deep breath as he leaned against his “tree-destroying” equipment. 

The guy had been standing next to the tree for the last three hours and had refused to move out of the way so that Dean could get the job done.These activist types were fairly common, and generally easy to handle according to his boss - Crowley - but that didn’t make them any less annoying. Dean was relatively new to this job and while it wasn’t a dream career or anything, it at least paid the bills. Or at least it  _ would _ if blue-eyes would just  _ move.  _

It wasn’t like Dean was heartless. Back when the guy first arrived and had made a big stink about sparing the tree he’d done a quick google search to see if there was anything significant about it but nothing had turned up. It wasn’t planted by anyone important, it wasn’t considered a historical landmark, and it wasn’t in an incredibly special location. 

The tree’s life was about as dull as Dean’s. 

The chain around the tree clanked as the man tugged the chain lower so that he could sit on the ground instead of standing. 

Dean watched as he pulled another water bottle from his backpack and took a few gulps before sealing it back up. He couldn’t tell if it was just water or if there was at least  _ some _ sort of sustenance in the drinks but he had yet to see him actually eating anything solid yet. Probably to keep him from having to go number two while he was more or less immobile...  

And Dean was not above using that to his advantage. 

A half an hour later, the pizza that Dean had ordered was delivered by a slightly confused pizza delivery girl but she’s walked back to her car with a decent tip, so she hadn’t asked many questions about the man chained to the tree. 

“Oh man, my favorite,” Dean said loudly as he opened the box dramatically. “This is some good shit right here.”

The man perked his head up a little when he saw the obvious box of pizza, but rolled his eyes and huffed out an annoyed breath. 

“That’s not going to work,” he said. “My will doesn’t crumble at the sight of cheese and grease.”

Dean began waving the box lid up and down to fan the smell in his direction. 

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Dean said as he pulled a slice out of the box and let the attached strings of cheese stretch as far as they could go before snapping. “I’m just over here eating this delicious pizza with no one to share it with.”

Dean looked over at the man and feigned surprise. “Oh, hello. Would you like some pizza, good sir? You can come over and get some if you want.”

Blue-eyes turned his head away. “You’re ridiculous.” 

“Said the guy chained to a tree.” 

Dean took a big bite out of his slice and moaned. It really was some good pizza. 

“So what’s your name?” Dean asked as he chewed. “I mean I might as well know if we’re going to be hanging out for a while. Calling you ‘That Crazy Activist Guy’ is getting old.”

Blue-eyes raised an eyebrow and folded his arms in front of his chest. “I’m Castiel. And I’m not an activist.” 

“Uh huh,” Dean eyed the chains that secured Castiel to the tree. “You’re right. I chain myself to permanent objects in my spare time, too. I’m doing the Empire State building at six. Want to come?”

“I’m  _ not  _ an activist. This tree is just important.” 

Dean took another big bite and pointed a finger at Castiel. “See, you keep saying that, but you’re wrong. I looked it up. This tree isn’t important at all.” He wiped at his mouth. “It’s just a normal tree that does normal tree things. No one’s gonna miss it.”

Castiel’s eyes narrowed. “ _ I’d  _ miss it.”

Dean shoved the last of the pizza in his mouth and slowly clapped his hands.

“Okay, but be straight with me,”

he said. Castiel’s mouth quirked.  “Are you doing this for publicity? You want a news crew to interview you? If I call them down and you get an interview can you leave so I can do my job?”

“No.” Any smile on Castiel’s face quickly vanished. “I already told you. This tree is important. Leave it alone.”

Dean sighed. “Wish I could,” he lied. “But unfortunately I don’t get paid until the tree is gone. So you see where the dilemma is.”

“Yes,” Castiel raised an eyebrow. “I guess I do.”

Dean held up a finger as he heard his phone ring. “Gimme a sec, Cas.” He winked and kept the box open and tantalizingly close to Castiel before getting up and taking the call behind his tractor. “Hey Crowley, what’s up?”

“What’s the progress on our friend?”

Dean sighed and shoved a hand in his pocket. “No leeway yet. But maybe he’ll leave at night?” 

The sun was getting low in the sky and Dean was crossing his fingers that it got too cold for him to stay chained to a fucking tree for that long. 

“Speaking of that… if he  _ does _ leave… I want you to be there.”

“Hold on…”

“The moment he leaves, tear it down so he can’t do anything in the morning.”

“I’m not going to spend the night here!”

“I’ll double your pay.”

Dean paused and leaned against the back of the tractor. “Keep talking.”

“Spend the night until he leaves. The moment he does, take the tree down and the money is yours. Double the original arrangement.”

“Fine. But I’m spending the night in my car.”

Dean hung up the phone and walked back over to his box of pizza and grabbed another slice. “Sorry about that. Did I miss anything exciting?” 

Castiel shrugged. “Not particularly. Did you tell your boss you changed your mind about the tree?”

Dean snorted. “I’m not in the business of lying.”

“Pity.”

Castiel yawned widely as the sun began to set and adjusted his sitting position so he could lean heavily on the chain. “What did you say your name was?”

“I didn’t. But it’s Dean.”

“Dean,” Castiel nodded his head, as if the name fit the personality. 

*

Night had fallen and Dean was - yet again - realizing how uncomfortable the backseat of his car was. He’d grabbed a few of the blankets that he always kept in his trunk and wrapped himself up when he realized that it was a lot colder at night than he’d expected it to be. 

He pulled out his phone and gave an involuntary shiver when he saw the temperature outside. It wasn’t  _ freezing  _ or anything, but it was enough to make him uncomfortable and he’d already had to suffer through one trip to a porta potty. 

Dean paused that train of thought and realized that if he was cold in a car with a few blankets, then someone who was, say, chained to a tree, had to be downright miserable. 

He peeked up and out the window of his car, which was just close enough that he could see the figure under the tree hadn’t moved at all since he’d last checked. As far as he could tell, Castiel really had no plans of leaving anytime soon. 

But maybe this chill would be enough to get him to leave?

Dean ducked his head back down and got settled in the back seat again. It was fine. Castiel was  _ choosing  _ to be out there in the cold. This was his own free will. 

Dean grumbled angrily as he grabbed the thickest of the blankets and shoved the door open before stomping over to the tree. 

Just as he’d predicted, Castiel looked miserable. He was shivering up a storm and looked wildly uncomfortable in his current position, but at least he’d somehow managed to fall asleep sitting up. 

Dean tossed the blanket over him haphazardly and even adjusted it a little until it was covering all of his extremities, then marched right back out to his car and tucked himself into the backseat once again. 

It wasn’t  _ being nice.  _ He wasn’t  _ trying to help.  _

He just didn’t want to have to come back out in the morning and see a corpse, is all. 

*

The alarm on Dean’s phone went off  _ way  _ earlier than he’d like it to, but it was a new day full of ripe possibilities that were calling to him. 

Like convincing a guy to unchain himself from a tree. 

Dean yawned as he shoved the blanket off of him. He was willing to forgo  _ one _ day of good hygiene for the sake of double pay, but after today Crowley needed to figure out how to do this in shifts or something, because Dean’s back was killing him and he hated the taste of morning breath on his tongue. 

“Morning, sunshine,” Dean muttered when he walked back to the tree to find Cas was already awake. Not surprising, considering the comfort of his sleeping arrangements, though the blanket had been folded and set to the side. “Anyone vandalize my tractor?” He looked it up and down but didn’t find anything out of the ordinary. 

Castiel was eyeing him with curiosity. “Thank you for the blanket.” 

Dean grunted and grabbed at it, shoving it under his arm. “I’m not making a habit of it. You’re on your own tonight.” 

Castiel merely shrugged and took out a stick of deodorant from his backpack and began applying one-handed as well as a small bottle of mouthwash. 

Dean raise an eyebrow. “Really?”

Castiel smiled sweetly as capped the lid and shoved it back into the pack. “I’m not leaving until this tree gets permission to live.”

“It’s just a tree,” Dean repeated with an eyeroll. “It’s not even a very old tree or anything significant like that. You’re just going to make yourself miserable out here.”

“Then miserable I will be.” 

Oh,  _ come on.  _ The guy seemed to care about this tree more than Dean had cared about anything in his entire life and that was saying something because Dean really cared about, like… pie. Okay and Sam. 

Dean groaned and sat down cross-legged in front of guy. “Enlighten me. What is it about this tree that is so important if it’s not that tree-hugger shit? Huh?”

Castiel frowned and looked away. “It’s belongs to me.”

Dean snorted. “Wrong. This is public property. It belongs to the city. Try again.”

“It  _ does.”  _ Castiel raised the hand  above his head that wasn’t currently in a cuff and slapped it against the tree trunk. “See? Right there.”

Dean squinted his eyes and could barely see an old-looking set of letters carved into the tree above him. 

“Yeah? What about it?”

“CN. Castiel Novak. That’s me.”

Dean huffed. The guy couldn’t be serious, right? 

“Just because you carved your initials in something doesn’t mean it’s yours,” he said, pointedly  _ not  _ thinking of his and Sam’s initials that had been carved into the car he now drove. “Sorry bud, it’s still public property.”

Castiel crossed his arms in front of his chest the best he could with one hand cuffed to a chain. “I did that when I was fifteen. But I  _ planted _ this tree when I was seven.” His expression almost immediately softened. 

Oh, wonderful. So the guy had some sort of emotional stake in this tree. 

“Well you should have planted it in your yard and not here.” Dean shrugged his shoulders. “Sorry. I wish I could help. But it’s got to go down and I hate to break it to you, but these sort of protests always fail.”

Castiel just grunted, obviously unperturbed by his insistence. 

Dean jumped when he heard the shrill sound of his phone ringing. 

“Hello?” he said gruffly. 

“Dean!” Crowley’s voice seemed awful cheerful for some unknown reason. “How’d you sleep? Just kidding, I don’t care.”

“Morning to you, too,” Dean muttered, glancing at Cas as he pulled out another water bottle. God, he hoped he’d gone number one sometime during the night. 

“Anyway,” Crowley’s voice drawled on. “I managed to convince law enforcement to get down to there and scope it out. I’m pretty certain that they can arrest our friendly neighborhood protester for unlawful loitering.”

“Hey I don’t really think that’s-”

“They should be there soon. Don’t worry.  You just do your job and they’ll do theirs.”

Dean held the phone in front of him and frowned when Crowley abruptly hung up on him, but he couldn’t say he was particularly surprised.  

“Well,” Dean looked up and shrugged his shoulders at Castiel, who was looking at him like he could already tell that something was up, “Cops are on their way. Looks like they’re planning on arresting you.” 

Castiel’s frown hardened. “Then I’ll resist arrest.”

Dean rubbed a hand on his forehead and sighed dramatically. “Look. Cas. I think you’re a pretty alright guy. I think you’ve got some serious balls to do what you’re doing right now. But it’s honestly just a fucking tree. So you planted a tree. Just go plant another one. Preferably in your own yard. It’s not worth it.”

“Yes it is,” he retorted, “I planted this tree with my mother. It’s one of the last memories I have of her.” Castiel’s jaw clenched as he swallowed, a wave of emotion crossing his face that made Dean draw a quick breath. After a moment of gaining composure, Castiel looked back at him and shook his head. “I’m sorry, Dean. I can’t lose this tree.”

Aw, hell. 

Dean closed his eyes and rested his forehead on his knees, giving himself space to think. This tree was obviously incredibly sentimental to the guy, but while Dean was definitely the first in line at the “Wanting to Keep Your Dead Mom’s Memory Alive” club, he wasn’t sure he was willing to get  _ arrested  _ for it. 

Wait, what the fuck was that line of thought?

He totally would. 

Dean clicked his tongue and scooted along the grass until he was seated directly beside Castiel with his back to the tree. 

“I’m going to regret this.” He muttered, and held out his wrist. 

Castiel squinted at him suspiciously. “What do you mean?”

Dean shook the outstretched wrist. “Cuff me before I change my mind, alright?”

A slow smile spread across Castiel’s face as he realized what Dean was doing for him. The actual construction worker chained to the tree he was hired to tear down? That might make a few waves. 

“Are you sure-”

“Fucking cuff me, man.”

Castiel apparently needed no more persuading as he pulled out the key from his backpack and unlocked the cuff that connected him to the tree and transferring it to Dean’s wrist so they were locked together. 

“I- thank you, Dean.” 

Dean huffed and leaned back against the rough bark, lolling his head to the side to gaze right into a pair of warm, blue eyes. 

“So. You come here often?”


End file.
